Merge Labs, a newly launched research lab, announced it is pursuing a long-term mission to bridge biological and artificial intelligence in order to “maximize human ability, agency, and experience.” The group describes its focus as developing fundamentally new brain-computer interface (BCI) approaches that interact with the brain at high bandwidth, integrate with advanced AI, and ultimately be safe and accessible for broad use. The company has raised $252 million in a seed round from OpenAI, Bain Capital, Gabe Newell, and several others.
In its launch announcement, Merge Labs frames its work around the idea that human experience arises from “billions of active neurons,” and argues that interfacing with those neurons “at scale” could unlock a range of outcomes—from restoring lost abilities to supporting healthier brain states, deepening the connection between people, and expanding creativity alongside advanced AI systems.
The lab’s technical ambition centers on dramatically increasing both the bandwidth and the brain coverage of BCIs while making them “much less invasive.” To get there, Merge Labs says it is developing new technologies that aim to connect with neurons using molecules rather than electrodes, while transmitting and receiving information using “deep-reaching modalities like ultrasound.” The group also emphasizes an approach that avoids implants into brain tissue, positioning its work as a departure from invasive BCI strategies that rely on surgical insertion.
Merge Labs argues that this combination—molecular interaction, ultrasound-based communication, and non-tissue-implant designs—could enable orders-of-magnitude improvements in how BCIs capture and deliver information. It also points to recent breakthroughs across biotechnology, hardware, neuroscience, and computing—both from its team and the broader ecosystem—as reasons it believes this path is achievable.
Beyond the scientific approach, the lab is pitching a product-oriented north star. Merge Labs says it envisions future BCIs that are “equal parts biology, device, and AI,” delivered in a form factor the team itself would want to use and that could become broadly accessible over time. The announcement stresses that achieving this vision requires thinking “in decades rather than years,” solving problems that span multiple disciplines, and proactively addressing risks related to safety, privacy, accessibility, and societal impact.
In that vein, Merge Labs highlights a commitment to building technology that is “safe, privacy preserving, accessible, and beneficial to users and society.” While the lab does not detail specific governance structures or technical safeguards in the announcement, it frames these concerns as core design requirements rather than afterthoughts, suggesting an intent to build a research culture that incorporates responsible deployment considerations alongside performance targets.
Operationally, Merge Labs says it is starting as a research lab with the goal of bringing together “the smartest, most motivated people building the future of BCI.” The organization describes planned work across molecular engineering, hardware development, and improving understanding of brain function “at scale.” It also says it intends to update technical approaches based on data, “seek to shorten timeframes,” and share progress and tools with the broader world to enable wider discovery.
The lab’s stated measure of success is moving from research to real-world products “that people love,” with an initial emphasis on helping patients with injury or disease before expanding into broader applications aimed at advancing human capability. The announcement closes with a recruiting call for people interested in contributing to the mission and lists the names Tyson Aflalo, Sam Altman, Alex Blania, Sandro Herbig, Sumner Norman, and Mikhail Shapiro as executives.
KEY QUOTES:
“Fully realizing this vision demands that we think in decades rather than years, tackle very hard problems across disciplines, and be proactive in ensuring that the resulting technology is safe, privacy preserving, accessible, and beneficial to users and society.”
Merge Labs (launch announcement)
